Ukrainian Welcome Circle

Welcome to the St. Julie Billiart & St. Peter Ukrainian Welcome Circle! Scroll down to see updates as we work to host the Bryiovskyi family from Ukraine.  All questions are to be submitted to the Welcome Circle at:

[email protected]

Update April 20, 2025 - Easter

An Easter message from the Bryiovskyi’s to all: 

“The bright holiday of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ is approaching! On this day, we wish each of you goodness and kindness. May your soul be filled with warmth and peace, may there be a peaceful sky above you, and may your beloved and joyful family and friends be near. May this holiday bring you harmony and joy. We wish that all grievances leave us, and only love and happiness remain. You have become very dear and sincere people to us. Every time, we want to say a big THANK YOU, With love The Bryiovskyi family”.

Update 3-23-25:

During this Lenten season, the UWC leadership is reflecting on how we can integrate our core spiritual disciplines of the Lenten Season of prayer, fasting and almsgiving, into support for the Bryiovskyis in their difficult wait for clarity on their immigration status in this tumultuous time. 

We invite you to join us in our Lenten practices in support of the Bryiovskyis and others who are distressed at this time. 

Prayer – Pray with us for all of those who are distressed as a result of the rapid changes in the government: 

God our Father, we know that you hear the cries of all those who are distressed. Hear us as we pray for them so that their plight might be relieved. We pray for those who are causing the distress, that they may incorporate compassion and clarity in their decisions. We pray for ourselves that we might have the courage to do whatever we can to alleviate the distress and to address the causes. We ask you this through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. 

Fasting – Give of your time to write a note or a card of support for the Bryiovskyis during Lent. Drop it in the collection basket and we will deliver it to them.

 Almsgiving – Any size donation to help us support the Bryiovskyis for the remainder of the year would be extremely appreciated. If that is not possible, then please take time to write them a note as described above. God bless you for your support of the Bryiovskyis on this journey.

Update 2-04-2025:

Our Ukrainian Welcome Circle and the Bryiovskyis need your help.  
There have been a number of Executive Orders in the last week or so addressing Immigration. UWC Members have been in these Zoom meetings as legal representatives of the United States Council of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and have provided insights into the impact of the Executive Orders. They also provided guidance regarding what information to share with our families. We have met with the Bryiovskyis and reviewed in detail everything we have so far. What they had heard made them fearful and the meeting helped to lessen some of that fear. We will continue to follow all updates and proceed as recommended.  This is the short summary.
 
Even though the Bryiovskyis came to the US legally under Humanitarian Parole, some of the proposed changes to Immigration could put their legal status in jeopardy.  Our family is currently working with an immigration lawyer to find options as are many of the other families who came to northeast Ohio sponsored by other parishes. 

So, how can we best serve them?

1.  Pray that the 7000+ Humanitarian Paroles who came to northeast Ohio since the war in Ukraine started are allowed to stay for the full term for which they were approved.

2. Contact your political representatives and urge them to speak up and support these programs so all the families are treated fairly.  You can do this with 3 clicks!

• Click “here” to access the form.

  • Enter your name, address and email.

  • A page will open showing pictures of your representatives along with an example of a message that supports these programs.

• Click “send” to submit as is or edit it to personalize then hit “send”.

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE WINNERS OF THE UKRAINIAN WELCOME CIRCLE RAFFLE

“Skylines of the West” Quilt: Geri Uhler - St Peter “Santa’s Surprise” Painting: Teresa Sivec – St Julie 

We also want to thank all of the crafters, who made so many beautiful items, and the volunteers who helped sell the items at St. Julie’s Christmas Craft Show. Nadiia and the children came and had a great time talking to the folks and wandering around the show. They loved the festive atmosphere and seeing all of the people sharing Christmas cheer. We made more than $2000 from these two activities that will go a long way in helping to support the Bryiovskyis. You are all so incredibly generous! Thank you!

On Thanksgiving, we received this message of gratitude from the Bryiovskyis and wanted to share with our communities: “Hello and thank you. And I want to thank you for everything you have done and are doing for us, our family is warm, prosperous and safe. We have you who care about us so much and love us. Thank you for everything to you and your team, we love you.” Also, please note that tickets sales for the quilt and the painting are complete and we will pick the winner this week. Winners will be contacted by phone to arrange delivery. We will also post the names of the winners in next week’s bulletin. Good Luck!

October 20, 2024 Update:

The reception for the Bryiovskyi family this past Sunday was well attended by parishioners from both St. Julie and St. Peter.  After sharing the story of their journey, Nadiia not only expressed their gratitude for all we have provided and done for them since they arrived, but also for how perfectly the house was set up when they got here. Then Nadiia, Artur, Daniel, and Suisanna sang a Ukrainian song of thanks which touched the hearts of everyone.  We have been blessed that God has put them in our lives exemplifying faith, courage, and bravery. 

Everything that we have been able to do for the family has been possible only because we have done it together. As we come to the end of the first year of commitment and begin planning for 2025, we ask if you could please continue your most generous support of our efforts.   There will be a second collection this weekend at all Masses to continue support for our efforts.

October 10, 2024 Update:

Save the Date! We will be joined by our Ukrainian family, the Bryiovskyis on Sunday, October 20. There will be a meet and greet at St. Julie’s after their 11 o’clock Mass (at or around Noon). You will be able to meet the family and hear a little about their journey. Of course, there will be refreshments.

May 18, 2024 Update:

English tutoring for both boys and Nadiia and Vitalii is going well. The combination of in-person and individualized online tutoring has made a big difference. Everyone is working hard.
 Vitalii was a mechanic in the Ukraine.  He came across an opportunity to do some work in his field. So now, as we go through the process of getting him into CDL license training and applying for financial aid, etc., he will get some experience that is directly applicable to his future. This process is a little complicated and requires admission testing that includes English as well as some pre-requisites, so we are working through it together.
As school comes to an end on May 22nd, the kids are looking forward to the summer. They will attend a one week camp at one of the local churches. They are also enjoying their new bicycles, bubbles, and looking forward to using the beach items so generously donated.
The family expresses their thanks every time we meet and in between! All of us are blessed by your generosity and prayers.  Thank you!


April 13, 2024 Update:

We had our monthly meeting with the Nadiia and Vitalii and thought we'd share some news.
 While we continue to support the household, it is extremely important that we begin to work together for them to gain important experience in managing funds and creating credit history. This is a very important step to gain independence and over the coming months we will work with Vitalii and Nadiia to achieve that goal. Some of this will happen through a secured credit card and checking account.
 All three kids are doing well. Suisanna continues to "help" mom around the house and in the kitchen. The boys are doing well in school but still need some help with their reading. We have provided an assessment from a seasoned English as a Second Language (ESL) teacher and also some one-on-one tutoring but it has been spotty.
 In addition, we have learned that the ESL classes at Tri-C are not working well for Nadiia and Vitalii. We had heard from other Welcome Circles that the lack of conversational English in the classes is a challenge for many of the parolees. This has proven to be true for Nadiia and Vitalii as well. They have been attending classes twice a week since mid-February and they are not happy with their progress either. All are anxious to improve.
 Putting all of this together, we are looking for tutoring alternatives that could be helpful to the whole family. Obviously, it is important for Vitalii's job opportunities too. There are a number of recommended structured programs under review. They have excellent resources for each family member. We are discussing these with Vitalii and Nadiia. Together we will decide the best option. Other than the reading challenges, the boys are doing well in school. We will review further with them closer to the end of the School year May 22nd.
 As the weather is getting warmer we are talking about fun things for the family as well. We will be looking to do some field trips with them and getting some sports equipment for the kids.
 We are reviewing all aspects of these goals and we are sure there will be some opportunities for folks to donate specific items or targeted donations in the next few weeks.
 We continue to be blessed by your generosity and prayers. Thank you!
 

February 21st Update:

A thank you video for all of the support given by our parishioners to the Bryiovskyi family

Thank You Video

December 27th update:

We received a wonderful Christmas gift!  We have found our Ukrainian family and they are here.
Because our original family was not able to come, we broadened our search. We found that there was a family who had just arrived to the US on December 10^th. So, we made contact with the sponsor and found we had complementary skills to help the family. We all agreed that we would work together to help them start their new life here.
We all met at the house in Parma on December 19^th and yesterday they signed the lease.
They are currently staying in Hinckley with a family member who came to the US one year ago under the same U4U program. 


They are the Bryiovskyi family:
Dad - Vitalii
Mom-Nadiia
Daniel - 8 y/0
Artur - 6 y/o
Siusanna - 3 y/o
The boys can attend Ridgebrook Elementary School (K-4th grade) which is literally right behind their house.
We still have a number of things to work out but we expect they will move into the house by next week.
Thank you again for all of your support.  

December 24th update: 

The St. Julie-St. Peter Ukrainian Welcome Circle has a family! The Bryiovski family (parents and three children ages 8, 6 and 3) arrived on December 10, having been sponsored by a Ukrainian Full Gospel congregation. Because of our Welcome circle they will be moving into the home our UWC has rented and prepared. More details will follow. Please pray for them as they get settled in Parma.

The house in Parma is ready for a family to move in.  See this video: 

Getting Ready for the Family  

Your financial support is still very much needed and appreciated. 

Thank you for your prayers, donations, labor and financial support!

Ways To Give:

1. Cash or Check - placed in the envelopes which are at the doors of the Church. Checks are to be made payable to: St Julie & St Peter UWC

2. Faith Direct

3. GoFundMeGoFundMe

Fundraisers:

Household Furnishings:

Note: This list was updated in October as the team and volunteers were setting up the home.

Sign Up to Donate Household Items 

Volunteer Opportunities:

(Opportunities for transportation and translation are still available)

Volunteer Opportunities

Status Updates:

Awaiting Arrival - November 4

Introducing the Prymochov Family -
October 14

Current Status - September 13

Support Needed and Ways to Give Monetary Gifts - July 22

What is the Ukrainian Welcome Circle? - July 8

The Welcome Circle has adopted the Memorare as our daily prayer. We ask that you commit to pray this every day that we are successful in providing new opportunities for a Ukrainian family.  The prayer can be found here:

Memorare Prayer